A Review and Synthesis
from Part III - Behavior
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 20 February 2025
This chapter of the handbook inspects the relationship between antisociality and morality from the dual perspectives of moral psychology and moral neuroscience. The authors provide a comprehensive overview of research on the moral cognition of different types of antisocial individuals. Based on their review of the research, they suggest that the capacity for moral reasoning in psychopathy is less defective than generally assumed. While the propensity of psychopathic individuals to engage in immoral behavior is due largely to affective deficits, it also stems from dysfunction in the neural circuitry underlying moral decision making. This simple narrative, however, is complicated by the fact that there is no single explanation of the immoral behavior exhibited by the full range of antisocial individuals. For example, while dysfunction in the neural circuitry of moral decision making may account for the immoral behavior of individuals with primary psychopathy and individuals prone to proactive aggression, it is less apt for explaining similar behavior by individuals with secondary psychopathy and a propensity for reactive aggression.
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